After my death our beloved Church abroad will break three ways ... first the Greeks will leave us as they were never a part of us ... then those who live for this world and its glory will go to Moscow ... what will remain will be those souls faithful to Christ and His Church.~St. Philaret of NY

Re: DEP PSALTIC ARTS GROUP - Thanksgiving

John-Peter Presson

Every
year, for some years now, around the Thanksgiving holiday, I ponder on a
service (below) that was blessed by St. Tikhon of Moscow (and, really,
Apostle to America) during his prolific missionary days as Bishop of San
Francisco. One thing that he was particularly struck by in the heyday
of American culture, is that Americans set aside a particular day to
give thanks to God for all that he has bestowed.

DISCLAIMER:
This service does not, at present, have the blessing of our hierarchs
for liturgical use, and is presented for contemplation purposes only.

Julianna Stephens accuses ROCOR-MP priest Matthew Williams of raping her daughter in 2004; and she accuses Matthew's wife, Elizabeth, of assisting a cover-up by coercing her daughter (the victim) into silence.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Julianna Stephens: former member of Agape Community, currently in GOA

Fr. Matthew Williams: son of departed ROCOR (Agafangel) Archpriest Gregory Williams. At the time of the rape he was a ROCOR deacon. After he joined the ROCOR-MP, he received a ROCOR-MP ordination to the priesthood.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I know the persons involved and after several years of listening, questioning and considering, I am even more confirmed in my certainty that the accusations are true.

Julianna comes across as hysterical, but that is not an excuse to dismiss all she says. Peeling away the overlapping layers of her grievances, and focusing only on the rape itself, it is clear to me that the rape did occurand thatthere was a cover-up.

In 2012, once she learned of the rape, Julianna filed a formal complaint with the ROCOR-MP Synod. An investigation was ordered. Elizabeth stepped up her harassing of the victim to keep silent and to deny it. The investigation was thwarted because the victim, an adult by that time, would not come forward.

In 2013 Julianna filed a police report in Roswell, Georgia, where the crime took place; but since the victim does not want to go to trial, there is no case number assigned.

In 2017 Julianna contacted the Special Victim's Unit of the 1st Judicial District Attorney's Office in Golden, Colorado. I'm not aware yet if there are any results.

The victim, now in her late 20s, continues to suffer syndromic distress.

She remains unwilling to press charges.

* The purpose of this post is to support the victim and not for punishing Matthew. But if there is anything in here for Matthew, it is to call him to bring forth worthy fruits of repentance before Judgment Day.

DEP PSALTIC ARTS GROUP - St John Chrysostom Prosomia

John-Peter Presson

The following https://soundcloud.com/john-p-presson/stjohnchrysprosomia are
a recording of the prosomia for the upcoming Feast of St. John
Chrysostom -the prosomia is "As valiant among the Martyrs" set to the
extended hiermologic melody (not the standard quick one). I also
included the Doxasticon. The Dogmaticon is the one appointed (Who would
not call thee blest) for the feast when it falls on weekdays (I believe
we will be chanting the Plagal 4th Mode this Saturday evening). My
voice is a little ratty, but you should get the gyst of the
interpretation.

I also attached the score drafts thus far, as well as a staff notated score of the prosomia (for those who are not proficient).

"Searching for anything that might help locate and stop the killer, investigators consulted an FBI Behavioral Profiler. For the Profiler, the escalating pattern of violence was caused by Coleman's legal problems back in Waukeegan."

paraphrased:"The Profiler noted the fact that Coleman had killed his newest victim the night before a court appearance on the charges of an earlier murder. The timing of this newest murder indicated to the Profiler thatColeman was responding to the stress of the court apearance. Coleman, until he was apprehended would continue to murder out of anger at those who are trying to stop him."

This typical psychopath characteristic is present throughout the whole spectrum* of psychopaths.

1. The psychopath does something mean to the victim.

2. The victim reacts (protests, or withdraws, or ignores, or complies).

3. The psycopath uses WHATEVER the victim does or does not do as his excuse to inflict additional and/or greater harm.

In other words, Coleman is going to continue to rape-murder whether detectives go after him or not. But if the detectives do go after him, then Coleman blames the detectives, because in his mind, the fact that he is being pursued he interprets as an attack against him, and so it justifies his retaliation against 'the system' or 'the world' that is against him. In his mind he becomes the victim.

ROCOR: Skete of the male monastic community in Khankai district (VIDEO)

Male monastic monastery in honor of the icon of the Mother of God "All the Sorrowful Joys" in the Khankaisk district of the Primorye Territory, in the village of Mayskoye , Bishop Vladivostok and Far East Anastasia are nourished .

The monastery's hermitage, Hieromonk Nikolai (Krasnikov), was awarded the right to wear a pectoral cross for many labors incurred in the skete by the decision of the Synod of Bishops of ROCOR.

"The Hebrew and Islamic peoples, and Christians... these three expressions of an identical monotheism, speak with the most authentic and ancient, and even the boldest and most confident voices. Why should it not be possible that the name of the same God, instead of engendering irreconcilable opposition, should lead rather to mutual repsect, understand and peaceful coexistence? Should the reference to the same God, the same Father, without prejudice to theological discussion, not lead us rather one day to discover what is so evident, yet so difficult -- that we are all sons of the same Father, and that, therefore, we are all brothers?"

This is a revealing response signed by Fr. Andrei Erastov who is representing his group. First he maintains that he is not a jurisdictional ecumenist. He truly does not understand why we keep saying he is a jurisdictional ecumenist, so he thinks we must be slandering or not listening to his denials. But then he goes on to define what he does believe, and lo, it is a perfect definition of jurisdictional ecumenism! I have highlighted it below.

A careful reading of this response reveals to me that there are basically two closely related core issues:

1. Mountain View's unclear concept of the Church, – seeing fragments as ok, whether they are in communion with each other or not.

2. Mountain View's dislike and distrust of Metropolitan Agafangel.

All the rest of the complaints result from the perspective caused by the related core issues. It would be distracting to focus on them until the main core issues are solved. So, I suggest putting them on the back burner.

posted on Mountain View's ROCANA website:

A Response to the "Appeal" of the Odessa Council 2017

The recently concluded Council meeting in Odessa chaired by Metropolitan Agafangel adopted a document under the intriguing title of "An Appeal to those who have Broken Away from the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church." Who are these individuals who have "broken away" and what is it that they must do to rejoin the bosom of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church?

In reading this Appeal, it becomes clear that the "broken away" refers to all Russian Orthodox people, and that in order for them to rejoin the Church, they need only to recognize the supremacy of Met. Agafangel over themselves. In other words, based on this "Appeal," it follows that Met. Agafangel's jurisdiction is the only one that is canonical and grace-filled, and all other jurisdictions are outside of the Church.

"The Appeal to the Broken Away" begins with a solemn confession of the unity of the Church and a stern condemnation of the newly revealed heretics who teach "that the Church was supposedly divided into separate groups who possess equal grace." To an uninformed reader the question may arise of "who are these madmen who deny the unity of the Church?"

About a year ago, Met. Agafangel accused Archbishop Andronik, Archbishop Sofroniy and their subordinate clergy, of a heresy of "schismo-ecumenism." In his words, we allegedly teach that the Church has been divided into fragments. Despite our repeated assurances, (for example see,

that none of us teaches that the Church is divided, but on the contrary, that we believe in the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, Met. Agafangel, as if not hearing our explanations, continues to charge us with this wild accusation. It would be useless to again and again respond to his accusations, which are nothing more than propaganda and malicious slander.

To our great surprise, in addition to the bishops of the Odessa Synod, this "Appeal" was signed by three bishops of the Greek Synod of Archbishop Kallinikos. We consider this to be an act of great carelessness on their part. The names of bishops should not be included on a document containing falsehood and slander.

Met. Agafangel's Synod is one of 16 groups, most of which claim that they are the only canonical and grace-filled Church, and that the other groups are all schismatic formations. Each of these groups calls to the others to join their solely canonical group. It is completely obvious that these appeals will never lead to anything.

We see the path to unification as not requiring the subordination of all to one administrative center, but rather of all these groups beginning discussions on the possibility of establishing Eucharistic communion among themselves.

We approach Met. Agafangel's group in a similar fashion. We have never broken our communion with anyone among the clergy subordinate to him and we do not reject Met. Agafangel's episcopal office. But we refuse to recognize him as our First Hierarch.

Any division in the Church is a painful wound. However, our separation from Met. Agafangel is not a schism, and calling it such is just one more slander. Schism is a separation from the canonical leadership of the Local Church. At present, the Russian Church does not have a legitimate Supreme Church Authority. As has been repeatedly explained, the fundamental canonical basis of the Russian Church, upon which our church structure must be based, is Patriarch Tikhon's Decree No. 362. This Decree foresaw the destruction of the Supreme Church Authority and ordered Bishops to unite into Church Districts, but did not require the subordination of all to one center.

At the January 2017 6th All-Diaspora Council in Mountain View, Archbishop Sofroniy presented a report in which he listed the numerous canonical and moral violations committed by Met. Agafangel. In his report, Abp. Sofroniy in particular cited a series of examples in which Met. Agafangel used slander to defame his opponents. In the short period of time since the 6th Council was held, this list has already been expanded with new cases of slander against Archbishop Andronik.

For us, there can be no question of returning under the subordination of Met. Agafangel, primarily because he has thoroughly compromised himself through his unworthy behavior. A person of low moral standards should not occupy the post of First Hierarch.

True Orthodoxy at the moment does not command respect, in large part because its bishops too often do not adhere to even basic moral principles, behaving as politicians and not as shepherds. Unfortunately, the lack of reaction from the Synod of Archbishop Kallinikos to the immoral actions of Met. Agafangel is diminishing the spiritual authority of that Synod.

Bishop Andrei

My comments on some specifics from the Response:

... to rejoin the Church, they need only to recognize the supremacy of Met. Agafangel over themselves.

Yes, there is one head of the Russian Church, the Third Rome, and whether you like him or not, and presently this head is Metr. Agafangel.

...We have never broken our communion with anyone among the clergy subordinate to him and we do not reject Met. Agafangel's episcopal office. But we refuse to recognize him as our First Hierarch.

This is where we can clearly see the dislike and distrust of Metr. Agafangel.

...Unfortunately, the lack of reaction from the Synod of Archbishop Kallinikos to the immoral actions of Met. Agafangel is diminishing the spiritual authority of that Synod.

This dampens my hopes that they will humble themselves before the Sister Churches. With their unclear concept of the Church, they fail to see the Church Militant on earth manifest in our Sister Churches, of which Christ is the Head.

AD

AD

THE SISTER CHURCHES

The True Orthodox Churches of Romania, and Bulgaria, and with the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, and with the Synod in Resistance, are called by the Grace of the Lord to coexist in Mysteriological communion.

from §4 of “Schedule of Steps in the Union Process” Feb. 2014

VL AGAFANGEL PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Theotokos and all the Saints: keep our souls unharmed from the destructive influences of globalism, ecumenism, and sergianism, and give all of us the strength to endure the latest onset of persecution of the Church of Christ. Amen

QUOTE

"I have taken you in my arms, and I love you, and I prefer you to my life itself. For the present life is nothing, and my most ardent dream is to spend it with you... I place your love above all things, and nothing would be more bitter or painful to me than to be of a different mind than you.”

St. John Chrysostom

QUOTE

"If we have a good priest (or bishop), we give thanks to God. If a bad one, we endure him".

- old Russian saying

QUOTE

"And here is something to which I would like to draw your attention to – something about which very many do not think about. Father Archimandrite Constantine, whom probably many of you know, the reposed editor of the journal “Orthodox Rus’”, a profound Christian mind, considered that the most terrible among all the achievements of the communists was that the communists created their own false-church, a soviet church which they shoved onto the unfortunate people in place of the genuine Church which went underground into the catacombs. Do not think that I am exaggerating or that Father Constantine was exaggerating!

Once, in the year 1918, a Pan-Russian Church Council was held. At this Council, the entire Pan-Russian Church together with its first holy hierarch, Patriarch Tikhon anathematized, excommunicated from the Church not only the theomachists and godless ones themselves, but also all those who would collaborate with them."

~St. Philaret of NY

QUOTE

"To the Russians abroad, it has been granted to shine in the whole world with the light of Orthodoxy, so that other peoples, seeing their good deeds, might glorify our Father Who is in heaven, and thus obtain salvation for themselves. But if it does not perform this purpose and even abases Orthodoxy by its life, the Diaspora will have before itself two paths: either to be converted to the path of repentance, having acquired forgiveness through prayer to God and being reborn spiritually and to being capable of giving rebirth to our suffering homeland; or else being rejected by God and remaining in banishment, persecuted by everyone, until gradually it will degenerate and disappear from the face of the earth."

from Vladika John's report to the All-Diaspora Sobor in 1938

QUOTE

The apostasy of our times, to a degree unique in Christian history, is proceeding not primarily by false teachings or canonical deviations, but rather by a false understanding of Orthodoxy on the part of those who may even be perfectly Orthodox in their dogmatic teaching and canonical situation. A correct "Orthodoxy" deprived of the Spirit of true Christianity—this is the meaning of Sergianism, and it cannot be fought by calling it a "heresy," which it is not, nor by detailing its canonical irregularities, which are only incidental to something much more important.

- Russia's Catacomb Saints

QUOTE

Let it not be thought, however, that I affirm that it is necessary to prize every peace. For I know that there is a splendid disagreement and the most destructive unanimity. Yet one must love a good peace which has a good purpose: unity with God.

-St. Gregory the Theologian

QUOTE

... To pious Christians the fact that the world has fallen into godlessness is to them obvious, and they are ready to see it as an unfortunate historical inevitability ...

Professor Viktor Trostinkov

QUOTE

If you want to have assurance that you are saved, repent now that you are young and healthy and it is manifest that you left sin while you were still able to sin. But if you persevere in sin into your old age, why then you did not leave sin, but rather sin left you.

St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain

QUOTE

Live in peace not only with your friends, but also with your enemies; but only your personal enemies, and not the enemies of God.

St. Theodosius of the Kiev Caves

QUOTE

Judge not according to appearances, but judge righteous judgment.

St. John 7:24

QUOTE

"If Russia is not ressurrected, a new Golgotha threatens the whole world."

Priest Vladimir Evsukoff 1980†

QUOTE

A man who does not express a desire to link himself to the latest of the saints (in time) in all love and humility owing to a certain distrust in himself, will never be linked to the preceding saints and will not be admitted to their succession, even though he thinks he possesses all possible faith and love for God and for all His saints. He will be cast out of their midst, as one who refused to take humbly the place allotted to him by God before all time, and to link himself to that latest saint (in time) as God had disposed.

St. Symeon the New Theologian

QUOTE

SCOBA, to which world orthodoxy gives such great significance, reproaching us for not belonging to it, actually is in no way a canonical organ. The Russian Church Outside of Russia was invited to take part in these conferences; however, our Church refused to send representatives there after clergy of the Moscow Patriarchate were invited. "We never and nowhere will sit at one table with them; by this our spiritual communion with the Universal Church is not broken."

Archpriest George Grabbe 1969

QUOTE

"Let us always thank the Lord that we are in the Holy Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, which throughout the 80 years of its existence has trodden the straight, royal path of God, without ever turning aside and losing its way."

QUOTE

The passions lying hidden in the soul provide the demons with the means of arousing impassioned thoughts in us. Then, fighting the intellect through these thoughts, they force it to give its assent to sin. When it has been overcome, they lead it to sin in the mind; and when this has been done they induce it, captive as it is, to commit the sin in action. Having thus desolated the soul by means of these thoughts, the demons then retreat, taking the thoughts with them, and only the spectre or idol of sin remains in the intellect. Referring to this our Lord says, 'When you see the abominable idol of desolation standing in the holy place (let him who reads understand)... (Matt 24:15). For man's intellect is a holy place and a temple of God in which the demons, having desolated the soul by impassioned thoughts, set up the idol of sin. That these things have already taken place in history no one, I think, who has read Josephus will doubt; though some say that they will also come to pass in the time of the Antichrist.

Philokalia

QUOTE

There are three things that impel us towards what is holy: natural instincts, angelic powers, and probity of intention. Natural instincts impel us, when, for example, we do to others what we would wish them to do to us (cf. Luke 6:31), or when we see someone suffering deprivation or in need and naturally feel compassion. Angelic powers impel us when, being ourselves impelled to something worthwhile, we find we are providentially helped and guided. We are impelled by probity of intention when, discriminating between good and evil, we choose the good.

Philokalia

QUOTE

The outward Gospel of social idealism is a symptom of loss of faith.

Fr. Seraphim Rose

QUOTE

Impurity of intellect consists first in having false knowledge, ...

Philokalia

QUOTE

Isn't Marx really the third of a trio with Darwin and Freud as a practical source in the war against revealed truth?

Fr. Seraphim Rose

Letters, 1972

QUOTE

QUOTE

To: ROCA members from the MP

"You have to understand that you have long been in a false church, which implants in its members' souls, a false spirituality, which in turn takes root and grows stronger and stronger, the longer a man stays in it."

Bishop Athanasius, 2014

QUOTE

Mankind has gone mad, and we see with horror the abyss into which it is being drawn. Let us lay aside every worldly care, and let us fall down in prayer and readiness for the dread Judgment of the Lord. Death will not come with bombs and poisons. Death has already come and take up residence with us and in us, and has made corpses of us, Mammon has overwhelmed this sinful world, which is dominated by Queen Science, Lucifer himself, which with one hand makes medicines and machines for man's foolish happiness and with the other terrorizes him by means of the bomb! Such is the sorry state of knowledge and the agony of the world through and through. Let us lift up our hearts.

-Photios Kontoglou (†1965) letter to Dr. Cavarnos dated 5/10/57

QUOTE

"Psychopaths are a superior subspecies. We transcend humanity. We are Nature's Supermen. We deserve the subservience and availability of everyone around us. Luckily, every year 100-million people are born throughout the world. We have 100-million new choices every year."

-Sam Vaknin, self-realized psychopath

QUOTE

Our Saviour placed the Church in the world in order to save the world, and Satan is always trying to place the world into the Church in order to destroy the Church.

attributed to Desert Fathers

QUOTE

"If you see lying and hypocrisy, expose them in front of all, even if they are clothed inpurple and fine linen."

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"No one man, or group of men, can himself speak for the Church of Christ. It is nonetheless possible to speak from within the Church, in conformity with Orthodox tradition; and it is this that we shall attempt to do."